Jul 17 - Former BetVictor Financial Director Sentenced to 2 Years in Prison On Theft and Fraud Charges
Former Financial Director for Gibraltar based betting company BetVictor, 55-year-old British national Christopher Paul Forster was today sentenced to two years in prison on one charge of Fraud by False Representation and two thefts.
In October 2012, Forster was promoted to the role of Financial Director within the company, earning a salary of approximately £100,000. Over a 14 month period, Forster stole £27,748 via the company credit card and a petty cash account, and further appropriated €30,486, from staff payroll.
In January 2014, the company carried out an analysis of Mr. Forster’s credit card expenses, discovering that the company’s money had been spent on hotels, flights, fuel, car hire, IKEA and Morrison’s, as well as nursery education for his children and treatment for his stepdaughter who suffers from severe brain damage.
Mr. Forster also took out an unauthorized loan with Leisure Land Limited, a company with the sole purpose of holding BetVictor shares, for £36,000, which he used to pay for a Cadillac. The defence did note that up until his arrest, Mr. Forster had been repaying the loan.
The case was heard by Chief Justice Anthony Dudley, with Christian Rocca standing for the defence and Robert Fischel QC acting for the Crown.
The defence argued that it was entirely out of character for Mr. Forster to have carried out the offence, producing a character reference signed by the Human Resources Director that made no mention of the offence, instead insisting that Mr. Forster had been a loyal and hardworking employee. The Chief Justice insisted that the reference was ‘very bizarre’.
The defence further claimed that Mr. Forster had suffered significantly for his crime, having been held in custody since March 2014, and his family having moved back to the UK. The defence council also said that Mr. Forster agreed to forfeit his £15- 20,000 pension scheme.
During the sentencing, the Chief Justice noted that Mr. Forster held a senior position in the company, which served to increase the seriousness of the offence. Much deliberation was made over whether the offence involved pre planning or whether the defendant acted opportunistically.
Mr. Forster suffers from a serious medical condition, which the Chief Justice did not believe deserved a reduced sentence.
